28 February 1917 Secretary of State Robert Lansing leaks the existence and contents of the Zimmermann telegram to reporter E. M. Hood of the Associated Press. The AP puts the entire story out on it's wire and it is picked up by major newspapers across the United States.
1 March 1917 The Zimmermann telegram, including its contents, the story told by the British to Ambassador Page (not the whole truth of how they acquired it), the original telegram sent over the American diplomatic cable, and the original from the telegraph office in Mexico City are published across the United States. According to David Kahn in The Codebreakers, "The nation gasped." (Kahn, p. 293) The House of Representatives immediately votes to arm U.S. merchant vessels. President Wilson's peace initiatives are rapidly deteriorating and talk of war increases markedly.
